Hi, this is Jay P. Morgan.
Today on "The Slanted Lens", we're gonna talk about how to do a silhouette.
It's very basic simple thing, but a beautiful image when it's used correctly.
So let's get started and see what we can do.
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Doing a
silhouette is very simple.
The principle is simply that you want a bright background, and you want no light on your
subject matter.
Doesn't have to be no light but minimal light on your subject matter.
Using the spot meter on your camera is really effective because it allows you to say, "I
want this area, I want to expose for this area."
And just quickly gives you a great exposure for that area.
If you just simply set your meter to spot mode, you're not going to get a spot meter
reading in the middle.
Little brackets around the meter, if you hit the white balance.
There's just a little bracket there and when you set that, and when those brackets go away
and it's just a single dot in the middle, that means you're going to get a value meter
reading from the center of your frame.
And when you set that center of the frame on what you want to be exposed, it will give
you a correct exposure.
If I set the center of my frame on my couple, I get a correct exposure for my couple.
And so the sky is white, everything is opened up around it.
But when I set that center of my frame over into the sky, I now get this gorgeous silhouette
because it's going give me the correct exposure for the clouds and for the sky in the background.
And of course, they're in silhouette, which means I'm gonna get a great silhouette of
the two of them.
When you're in either one of the auto modes like shutter priority or after priority, you're
gonna be able to just put the center of your frame on your couple.
It's gonna give you a correct exposure for them since we very bright or the sky which
will give you a correct exposure for the sky.
If you go to manual, you got have to change your shutter, change your aperture to give
you a correct reading for the couple.
When you move lower and take a reading of the sky, you're gonna have to adjust your
shutter, adjust your aperture to where you get a correct exposure for the sky.
So I was telling you, this is the area we're talking about, the couple.
Or this area we're talking about, the sky.
So the spot meter is just a really easy meter to use, to give you a silhouette especially
throw it on one of the priority modes, put it in spot meter, aim at the sky and shoot
away.
It'll look fabulous.
One of the things I love when I shoot a silhouette is a graphic element.
You see it was a little boy who's sitting on the fence, the cowboy shot.
I just got that leading line of the fence, little cowboy great sunset the background.
I love those kinds of silhouettes.
Same thing for the Geodome, I shot this for Lifetime.
It's just that graphic element and you see the sunset in the background, that's a fabulous
look for silhouettes.
I love sunsets in general because you can put trees in front of them, you can put cityscapes
in front of them.
It's just a really effective silhouette.
That whole line of people surfing.
You see the people in the background, the surfer in the foreground.
Another thing I do a lot of times if I want a really effective silhouette is I'll put
my subject into the shade, and I let the background blow out.
And now I got a great silhouette.
I did that with Lincoln with all the gravestones in the background.
Couples, I'll tell you, if I'm ever having to shoot a couple, I'll take them out.
I'll stand up on the hillside.
I'll get down low.
I'll try to put him against a white sky or a bright sky or blue sky.
It's great for shooting those kinds of romantic engagements and those kinds of things as well.
So there's always an opportunity.
Pick up some, shoot a few, shoot them really quick before you get into your main shot.
Just give you another idea another look.
So there's some simple principles for doing a silhouette.
You can take that and apply to so many different things, just gives you a little something
different to do when you're shooting at a wedding or doing some shots of a model.
It's just a great way to apply a different principle and you give a different look.
We got Michael Thatcher here.
He's our lamplighter.
We're gonna do some shots of him just as a silhouette with his little lamplighter candle
burning, and then we'll do some strobe light in the lamp, some rim lights on, kinda let
the light build from there.
This is where you gotta choose the right lens.
If you use an 85-millimeter lens, it pulls the background in closer.
Makes it hard to get them up into the sky.
If you use something more like a 45-millimeter lens, you get down a little lower and now
you're looking up in the sky and you get that great sky to make your silhouette behind.
So take a look at some of these examples.
Silhouettes become just another thing you can do to give a different look when you're
shooting your talent, your couple, whatever you're doing.
So use it as a quick, "Hey, I can get this great shot," and it kinda gives you some variety
in the things you give to your talents.
Most photographers doing a wedding and things will not shoot silhouettes, but if you do,
they look fabulous.
They become the stunning shot that most people love.
So shoot some silhouettes.
Keep those cameras rolling.
Keep on clicking.
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